Clean Line Energy Meeting In Ozark

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OZARK (KFSM)-Leaders and concerned landowners talked about the plans for a $2 billion transmission line which would run from Oklahoma through Arkansas and all the way to Tennessee. The power company held a meeting Thursday (Aug.28) to discuss with the concerned landowners about the prosposed project and what it could mean for the area.

Clean Line Energy said it'll be two-hundred feet long and carrying high voltage power right through the River Valley.

Veterinarian Dr. Paula Broadfoot said if the transmission line gets built, there are numerous health concerns for wildlife that come about. "Cancer, heart disease, stress induced mental health issues, and depression, its just immense," said Dr. Broadfoot.

"Arkansas produces more energy then it needs," according to Dr. Broadfoot. "We don't need here, they are going to chew up some property across Arkansas and serve a little of Arkanasas utilities."

The company's thats planning to build the transmission line already has the approval it needs from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. However, the project still needs to work some details before they can build the proposed transmission line.

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5 comments

Stop This Disaster

There is NOTHING “Clean” or honest about this scam of a project. And it DOES NOT have approval to build anything. This reporting is COMPLETELY inaccurate (and riddled with grammatical errors). There are more than just a few “details” to work out. We can still stop this! Arkansans must fight this billionaire-funded private company from Texas who plans to cut a 200 foot wide scar across the Natural State with monstrous transmission towers and lines from Crawford County all the way to the border with Tennessee. So this is not just the River Valley. And they will try and take the land from those property owners who stand in their way. If you care about Arkansas and her future generations, then you must join the fight!!! Contact your elected officials. Join the group. “Like” them on Facebook. Go to this website to learn more: http://arblockcleanline.com/

There are several pretty serious errors of fact in this story. Understandable, since it is a very complex situation. However, just to clarify:
1) The proposed HVDC transmission line is not 200 feet long, it’s 700 miles long, running from Oklahoma to Tenn. The easements they are proposing are 150-200 feet wide.
2) The meeting held last night at Arkansas Tech was not sponsored by Clean Line, but hosted by Bill Gossage in opposition to the line.
3) The images of power lines shown in the video are distribution lines. The transmission lines includes steel structures up to a possible 200 feet tall (although Clean Line claims to have taken the tallest towers off the table).
4) FERC has given Clean Line conditional permission to sell capacity on the line. This DOES NOT mean that this project is a go. FERC does not have any the authority to allow them to site the line. They DO NOT have utility status in Arkansas. The Dept of Energy has NOT ruled on whether they support the project. And most importantly, Clean Line DOES NOT have the the right of eminent domain. They can’t come on your land without your permission… And if they do, you can tell them to leave.
This project is far from a done deal and it’s really critical that the media understands fully what they’re saying when they report on this for the simple reason that people have their land and livelihood on the line. A correction, or better yet, an in-depth report would be a really excellent way to make sure that people have the most accurate information.

Julie

Julie

OK, the saying that all press is good press obviously does not apply to this reporting. Do you think that residents all across our state would be fighting a transmission line that is “200 feet long”? That doesn’t even make sense. I have tried repeatedly to get the attention of the press in our area and they have consistently ignored this issue. One wonders why such an important story is getting no coverage here. It is in Little Rock and other parts of the state being affected. It takes a little research to understand this matter and maybe that’s just to much effort. This is basically the federal government overriding our state’s rights and private property rights by granting a private, for-profit corporation, Clean Line, the right of eminent domain. The Arkansas Public Service Commission denied them that right since no AR customers will be served by this line. I guess that wrecks and fires are much bigger news than 8,000 acres in AR being lost to this unnecessary project. Maybe if the press understood the amount of opposition from landowners, federal legislators and state legislators they might be more interested. I yearn for the days of actual fact-finding, investigative reporters. If there were any in our area, they would be all over this and they would get the facts straight.